Process furnace



Sept 22, 1942- w. H. MARcHAN-r 2,296,390'

PROCESS FURNACE Filed Feb. 28, 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet l V g5 et;

SePt- 22, 4i942' w. H. MARCHANT l 2,296,390

PROCES S FURNACE Filed Feb. 28, 1940 2 sheets-sheet 2 www Patented Sept. 22, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PROCESS FURNACE William H. Marchant, South Pasadena, Calif.

Application February 28, 1940, Serial No. 321,277

4 Claims.

This invention pertains to a process furnace, as for example such as used in processing oils, gases and processed liquids or fluids.

In oil refining apparatus, for example, it is usual to use a type of furnace for heating the oil commonly known as a pipe still. One of the preferable forms of this type of furnace embodies a structure within which oil may be heated by radiation and by convection, thus utilizing a maximum heat transfer between the heat source and the oil in the tubes of the two sections of the furnace. In most structures of this particular type the bank of convection tubes is located at a point of considerable elevation. This makes it diicult to clean the tubes or to change them since scaffolding must be erected in order that workmen can conveniently carry on repairs at a considerable elevation above the ground. In these various stills it is also a problem to maintain a suitable foundation beneath the still since the continuous heat of the furnace will act in certain soil conditions to dry out the soil and cause it to become unstable as a support. It is also a principal object in constructing pipe stills to attempt to attain the greatest amount of heat transfer possible. It is the principal object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a furnace at reduced cost and of the type described which has been designed to place the convection section of the furnace beneath the door thereof and in the path of travel of the products of combustion to the flue of the furnace, whereby the tubes in the convection section may be easily7 reached and readily withdrawn or interchanged, and furthermore whereby a maximum heat transfer between the ilue gases and the tubes will take place in the area beneath the floor of the furnace, thus insuring that a relatively small amount of heat will radiate to the ground beneath the furnace.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a furnace having a radiant furnace section in connection withwhich heat is generated or introduced into a furnace and in the presence of a bank of radiant tubes and after which the products of combustion pass into a convection 45 section of the furnace located beneath the floor of the radiant section where a bank of convection tubes is placed in the path of the gases flowing from the furnace to the stack.

The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a view in central vertical section through the furnace showing the arrangement of the radiant and convection sections.

Fig. 2 is a view in transverse section through 55 the furnace as seen on the line 2--2 of Fig. 1,

showing other details of the invention.

Referring more particularly to the drawings,

I and II indicate vertical end walls of a type of furnace with which the present invention 1s concerned. Side walls I2 and I3 are also provided, and a ceiling I5 may be supported thereby. These Walls are made of heat-resistant material. Extending horizontally within the furnace is an elevated floor I6. This is spaced vertically from a sub-floor I'I and forms a convection section I8. The space within the furnace between the elevated floor and the ceiling I5 forms the radiant section I9.

In the end wall Il) burner openings 2li are formed so that suitable burners may be mounted therein and will produce a desired combustion of fuel Within the furnace. At the opposite end of the convection section from the throat 2l is a duct 22 leading to the furnace stack. Thus, it will be seen that the furnace here disclosed is a down draft furnace and that its convection section is disposed beneath the oor and in a path of travel of the combustion gas to the stack. Mounted in the top of the radiant section is a bank of oil circulating tubes 23. These are here shown as extending horizontally from the wall I0 to the wall II and as being disposed parallel to the ceiling I5 and the side walls I2 and I3 and adjacent thereto.

Mounted within the convection section I8 and disposed at right angles to the path of flow of the combustion gases to the stack is a set of oil circulating tubes 24. These tubes are supported at their opposite ends in wall structures 25 and 26 through which the convection tubes 24 extend. The ends of these tubes terminate within a space 26 beneath the walls of the furnace, which space at times may be closed temporarily by removable panels or doors 21. When these panels are removed access may be had to all of the tubes 24 in the convection section. It will also be noted that the panels 21 when used are above ground, making it possible for workmen to gain access readily to the tubes to withdraw or interchange them.

The banks of tubes may be disposed in any desirable relationto each other or to the furnace. The elevated floor is supported upon piers 28 which'rise from the sub-floor I1 and terminate a desired distance below the elevated oor. These piers may be constructed of the same or different material from the remainder of the furnace. Resting upon these piers are structural iron elements 29 of structural section. Openings 30 are formed through the upper leg of the section and receive a locking lug 3| carried by door plates 32. These locking lugs 3| are disposed at one end of the floor plates only so that the other end while resting upon the next adjacent structural element will be free to move laterally as it expands and contracts. The end of the iloor plates carrying the lugs is formed with an overhanging lip 33 which lies over the next adjacent floor plate and forms an expansion joint therewith.

Supported upon the oor plates 32 is a thickness of nre-resistant material, as indicated at 34. In order to prevent this material from objectionably deteriorating or disintegrating due to its expansion and contraction it is preferable to mak-e the layer of material in blocks or sections, and as here shown the joints between the sections are broken and preferably occur between the joints in the sections of the floor plates 32. The floor plate 32 which occurs at the end of the floor adjacent the throat 2l may be formed with an up-turned lip 35. which forms a limiting element for the layer of lire-resistant material 34. It is desirable to apply a layer of heat insulating material 36 to the sub-oor l1 so that the heat lost by radiation will be minimized. This will prevent penetration of heat into the ground beneath the sub-floor with the attendant detrimental results. It may be desirable to also provide means for cooling the sub-.floor and the piers and at the same time supplying hot air to support combustion of fuel in the burners. This may be done by laying or forming air tubes 31 in the sub-floor to extend the full length thereof and to terminate in an up-turned portion 38 leading to the burner openings 20. -Other expedients for creating suitable air circulation may be provided if desired. The piers 28 may also be formed with air ducts 39 in communication with the ducts 31..

In operation of the invention the furnace is assembled as herey shown, after which it is red. The heat produced by the burner will be imparted to the tubes 23 substantially by radiation. The products of combustion will flow horizontally over the elevated floor I6. and then will pass downwardly through the throat2l and into the convection section I8 where it will encounter the tubes 24, after which the combustion gases will flow through the ducts 22 and into the stack (not shown in the drawings). It is to be understood that the elevated iioor I6 may be made of heat insulating material or noninsulated material inV order to meet the heat transfer requirements of the apparatus, and that this ooracts to guide or direct the heated air across the radiant section of the furnace and thenY in a' counter-how beneath the floor and through the convection section of the furnace. 'I'he rate of heat exchange in the convection section of the furnace will depend upon the crosssectional area of the convection sectionv and the obstruction therein Yto. the flow of the gases, whereby the velocity will be determined. I-t will be seen that the presence of the convection chamber below the-main floor of the radiant section will act to insurev a minimum heat loss through the sub-floor and the ground therebeneath and will reduce the cost of the material and labor used in construction of the furnace, since objectionable and expensive pipe supports will be eliminated and in the designs here shown one Wall will lbe eliminated which is normally used to define the convection section. It is also to be pointed out that by the arrangement here shown Va lesser number of heat transfer tubes are required since a greater amount of heat is absorbed without Waste. In addition to these features it will be noted that since the convection bank of tubes is disposed at ground level they may be easily serviced, resulting in the use of less labor and greater safety to the Workmen.

It is to be understood that While the invention is here shown as embodied in a furnace structure for processing oil that the same invention may be used in connection with various other types of apparatus. Y

While I have shown the preferred form of my invention as now known to me, it will be understood that various changes may be made in combination, construction and arrangement of parts by those skilledv in the art, without departing from the spirit of my invention as claimed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a furnace of the type described which includes an outer walll forming a furnace chamber and within the upper portion of which are radiantly heated tubes and in the lower portion of which are convectively heated tubes, a horizontal partition separating said sets of tubes, said partition comprising a plurality of separate interengaging shield plates fre-ely supporting a separate layer of fire resistantmaterial, whereby the partition will protect the convection tubes from the eXtreme heat to which the radiation tubes are subjected.

2. In a furnace of the type described which includes an outer wall forming a furnace chamber and within the upper portion of which are radiantly heated tubes and in the lower portion of which are convectively heated. tubes, a horizontal partition separating said sets of tubes, said partition comprising a plurality of separately movable interengaging shield plates supporting a separate layer of fire resistant material, whereby the partition will protect the convection tubes from the eXtreme heat to which the radiation tubes are subjected, land supporting means for said partition permitting expansion and contraction of the partition.

3. In a furnace of the type described which includes an outer wall forming a furnace chamber and within the upper portion of which are radiantly heated tubes and in the lower portion of which are convectively heated tubes,.support ing piers, a horizontal partition wall resting upon said piers and dividing the radiant tube section from the convection tube section, said horizontal partition wall including separate metal floor plates fixed upon said piers at one edge and adapted to have relative movement with each other, and a plurality of separate heat resistant slabs freely resting upon said plates and substantially covering the same.

4. In a furnace of the type described which includes an out-er wall forming a furnace chamber and within the upper portion of which are radiantly heated tubes and in the lower portion of which are convectively heated tubes, supporting piers, a horizontal partition wall resting upon said piers and dividing the radiant tube section from the convection tube section, said horizontal partition wall including separate metal floor plates fixed upon said piers at one edge and overlapping each other and adapted to haverelative mov-ement with each other, and a plurality of separate heat resistant slabs mounted upon said plates and substantially covering the same.

WILLIAM H. MARCHANT. 

